Friday Follies

If you are looking for a way to do some easy care gardening, check out this website.

www.hangpot.com

It is a clever way to hang pots on fences, walls, posts or garden gates. It is a wonderful way to have a garden with out having to go through all the work of digging up the ground. You can grow a variety of things in these pots. While they aren't big enough for something like a tomato plant, they would make a great way to have an herb garden, grow strawberries, lettuce or anything else that is on the small side.

End of Summer Musings

Now that we are at the end of August, we have to big weekends coming up. This weekend of course, is the Jazz Festival. It will be a little challenging for some people to make up to the hill due to the closure of Highway 74 from Hemet. However, 243 from Banning will remain open and so everyone should be able to make it up ok.

Next weekend will bring the 3 day Labor Day weekend. I guess this means that summer will be officially over. School has already started and autumn, Halloween and Thanksgiving can't be far behind. While the carefree days of summer may be coming to an end, we certainly have a lot to look forward to with the coming cooler weather.

We hope that all of our customers enjoy these last two summer weekends. Please remember to turn your water off when you leave you mountain home.

Billing

There seems to be some confusion when it comes to our billing system, so here are the facts. They are also listed on our website at www.pcwd.org.

We bill on the first work day of the even months (Feb, Apr, Jun, Aug, Oct, Dec). The bill is due on the 25th of that same month, or the following Monday if the 25th falls on the weekend. If your bill has not been paid by the 25th, late notices are then generated and the account is subject to disconnection and/or a $15.00 Late Fee after the 10th of the following month, unless the bill is paid in full, or you have called the office to make other arrangements.

We have had an occasional problem with the small postcard bills getting lost in the mail or not reaching the customer. If you have not received your bill by the 10th of the even months, please call our office to request a duplicate, or you can email becky@pcwd.org. Remember, you are responsible for your water bill even if it gets lost in the mail.

Please make sure that the office has your most current mailing address and a phone number to be used in case of an emergency. If you have not filled out your Application for Water Service yet, please do so as soon as possible. You can mail it in, drop it off at the office or fax it to 951-959-3112. Please email becky@pcwd.org with your current billing information and emergency phone number, or feel free to call the office and speak to us personally.

As always, please remember to turn off your water when you leave your mountain home.

Monday Musings

Early Saturday morning I awoke to a strange sound. What could that noise on the roof be? Then it dawned on me that it was rain! Oh happy day. It was raining. While it didn't turn out to be a lot of rain, at least it was something. It was refreshing to wake up to a cool, rainy morning. I pulled on my heavy robe as it felt pretty chilly in my house, and headed downstairs to put the kettle on for tea. I leisurely sipped a cup of hot tea while I listened to the raindrops come down. It was a wonderful way to start the day. It makes me long for autumn and cooler, wet weather and I thoroughly enjoyed the respite from the non-stop sunshine. Plus the smell of rain is one of lifes true pleasures.

I hope you too enjoyed the little shower Mother Nature saw fit to provide us with. I can only hope that we have more mornings like that in store for us.

Shake or wood shingle roofs

As a public service to our customers, we wanted to make you aware that The Mountain Communities Fire Safe Council is working with FEMA to obtain a grant that would help homeowners to replace wood shingle or shake roofs with class A fire resistant roof. A property owner could pay as little as 30% of the cost of a new roof. However, it is very important that you fill out an application as soon as possible in order to get put on the list now.

You may have already received a postcard in the mail from the Mountain Communities Fire Safe Council regarding this matter. You can call MCFSC at 951-659-6208 or stop by their office to get put on the list. They are open Monday thru Friday, from 9 to 12 and 1 to 4.

The Pine Cove Water District wants to be sure our customers have the opportunity to apply for this program. We have sent a letter to those customers in our district that we have identified as having a wood shingle or shake roof, informing them of this program. We hope you will take advantage of this opportunity. If you fall into this category, please check into this program as it could save you a lot of money on a new roof.

August Already?

Time is flying by and before we know it, summer will be over. We would like to remind everyone to be sure and TURN OFF your water at your customer valve when you leave your mountain home. Nothing can ruin a wonderful vacation like coming home only to find out you have had a leak. Turning off your water when you leave, not only prevents damage in your home should a leak occur inside, but it prevents excessive water usage should a leak go undetected for any amount of time. With the dry, hot weather we have been having, a small outdoor leak can go undetected for a long time. Many people mistakenly think that there would be a large wet area should a leak occur, but that is not always the case. Depending on the location and size of a leak, you may never see any wet ground at all.

Remember that any water that runs through your meter is your responsibility. So please be very diligent about turning your water off when you leave the hill and prevent a unfortunate situation from occurring.